On Friday, April 23, 2004 at a scheduled ultrasound I learned my son of 28 weeks 3 days gestation had passed away. It was entirly unexpected as all appointments and ultrasounds prior too were great with no issues at all. His heart beat was even heard on Monday the 19th. As of right now all the docor has told us is that he was small for his gestational age, about 3-4 weeks behind in grouth and that there was very little amniotic fluid. He listed some things that could have been the cause but quite frankly after my heart had been ripped out and run over by a MACK Truck I didnt comprehend much of what he said. I know he mentioned Preeclampsia which I was trying to do research on when I found this site. We had to wait the entire day Friday and Saturday, it wasnt until Sunday the 25th that the hospital admited her for delivery. What a horrable weekend. When they broke her water Sunday night there was little if any amniotic fluid. We were fortunate enough to get 2 hours with our son, holding him, cuddling him, loving him and telling him how proud we where of him. All of our family was there so we were able to all see him. Not neerly enough time but yet I'm greatful we had at least that. I didnt think things could get any worse, unfortunatly I was wrong. After going home Monday morning, my wife began getting sever back pains, by Thursday she had had a 102 temp. I rushed her to the ER to find out she had a blood clot in her right lung. The doctors began preparing me for the worst.. I could loose my son and wife in the same week.. Luckly she responded well to treatment and was discharged yesterday and is doing 100 times better. These things seem too couinsidental to not be related. We have to wait another 5 weeks until we go back to her OBGYN to get some insite as to what might have happened causing us to loose our baby.. She did have higher blood pressure (not terrable but much higher then her normally very low), some protien in her urion, she had just begun swelling pretty bad in her ankles so I imagine they are going to say preeclampsia but will this cause a lack of amniotic fluid? Perhaps it has something to do with a blood clot. Does anyone have any opinions?

Oh, I am so sorry to read your post. My thoughts are with you and your wife at this difficult time. I hope that you get answers soon, to have to wait so long is horrible. Maybe you can discuss it with her normal dr, I assume she has sooner follow-ups regarding what happened to her.

With my preeclampsia at my last ultrasounds I had high amniotic fluid (not sure if this was due to something else or the preeclampsia), which caused some limited movement of my daughter. I was put on magnesium and had continued circulation and blood pressure problems even after delivery. My kidneys were having problems functioning and my liver labs were bad. I think these are typical preeclampsia problems, but not sure if what happened to your wife is, I hope someone can answer for you soon what happened.

It pains my heart to see someone else having to go through this *. I can just offer my empathy and for you to know others feel your pain.

Thank you both very much! I have been doing alot of research today. They did diegnose her with Lupus Anticoagulant which seems to have similar simptoms during pregnancy as PE. The one major thing that stands out to me is that she doesnt have nor ever has had any kindey problems, perhaps what happened is more related to Lupus then PE. Its just so hard to wait this long for answers.

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Mom and I love and miss you very much.. Shane Andrew, April 25, 2004

HI Craig,
I am so deeply sorry for your loss. I wanted to add that having Lupus is a "red flag" when it comes to preeclampsia. Those who have it are at greater risk of developing pre-e. Maybe you could get a copy of her chart from her OB so you can look at all the #'s (bp, protien). My prayers are with you all.

Craig - I am very sorry for your loss. I lost my son 10 months ago. The ultrasound I had a week before losing my son there was plenty of fluid, the night I found out we had to deliver, there was very little fluid. I know that one thing they were watching for when I was on mag was my lungs to make sure I didn't get fluid in my lungs and when there was a little they had me coughing it up quick.

I am glad your wife is recovering well. I know that for my husband the part the helped him throught he grief of losing our son was that he still had me there.

What a terrible ordeal you have been through. I will keep you all in my prayers. My daughter was also very small for her gestational age. She was fine at about 22 or 23 weeks, weighing over two pounds with plenty of fluid according to the ultrasound. Then at 26 weeks when I developed severe pre-eclapmsia, they did an ultrasound and I hardly had any fluid, and she was very tiny for her gestational age. Anyway, they ended up doing a c-section because we were both in trouble at that point. In the delivery room they said she weighed less than a pound. Apparently the pre-e was starving her of any nutrients. Anyway, I'm glad you found this board and I hope both you and your wife can find comfort in the wonderful people who have been through tough times.

I am very sorry for the loss of your son. I can relate to how you and your wife feel, I loss my daughter to PE about 2 months ago. And it is a very sad and lonley feeling. And it is also a horrible feeling not knowing why this happened. I am glad to know that your wife is feeling better though.

april(24)
dh-billy(29)
dd-Natalie 3/10/04(pasted away after 1 hr.) induced labor at 23wks and 5 days due to severe PH/HELLP

I'm terribly sorry for the ordeal you and your wife have been through.

Lupus Anticoagulant can cause your wife's blood to clot excessively during pregnancy. Small clots in the placenta are thought to be one of the causes of pre-e. Pre-e can lead to low amniotic fluid (so can other things); in my case, I hardly had any fluid either. One treatment they may suggest during pregnancy is heparin, blood thinner.

I'm glad you found this web-site. There is a wealth of support and information here.

I am so sorry for your loss, my prayers are with you and your wife through this terrible time. My heart breaks for you guys.

One thing I might suggest is not waiting the 5 weeks before you go back to the OB or, seeing another doctor in between now and then. With all that happened it will take a while for your wife's body to recover and it may given you some peace of mind to be checked out before then.

Like the others have said, the Lupus Anticoagulant is a red flag warning risk factor for preeclampsia. There are several women here who have successfully been treated in subsequent pregnancies and I pray that that can give you some hope.

Again, I am so very sorry for your loss and will keep you in my prayers.